Knitted fabric



H. RUBENSTEIN KNITTED FABRIC April 22, 1930.

1925 2 Sheets-Sheet l Filed oct. 15,

April 22, 1930. H. RUBENSTEIN KNITTED FABRIC 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed OCC.l5, 1925 Patented Apr. 22, 1930 UNITED STATES HARRY RUBEN STEIN, OFBROOKLYN, NEW YORK KNITTED FABRIC Application iled October 15, 1925.Serial No. 62,585.

The invention relates to knitted fabrics and the method of and apparatusfor producinv the same.

he principal object of the invention, gen- 5 erally stated, is toprovide means for and a method of making a knitted fabric possessingcertain characteristic features in the arrangement and location of theloops or stitches whereby an unusual and highly attractive appearancewill be obtained.

Another object of the invention is to provide, in a circular knittingmachine, a novel combination and arrangement of needles,

and other assol the peculiar loop or stitch formation and produceafabric having the desired characteristics.

A more specific object of the invention is to provide a method ofknittin involving the employment of means inclu 'ng different sets ofneedles arranged in alternation and acting at certain times inalternation and at other times together so as to form loops or stitchesall of which are interlinked in a certain peculiar manner to make thefabric.

rther object of the invention is to provide a knittlng method andapparatus 1n which the times at which the needles operate in alternationand the times at which they operate in unison or simultaneously areinterlinkedstitches or or design.

A still more specific object of the invention s the provision of aknitting method and means for carrying it out including sets of needleshaving their general features in common but having certain differentcharacteristics whereby certain of the needles will be acted upon bycertain cams, others acted upon by different cams,-and both acted uponsimultaneously by certain other cams so that the successively alternateand simultaneous movement will-produce the fabric desired.

To the attainment of the foregoing objects and advantages, the inventionconsists preferably in the method and the means for carrying it out tobe hereinafter more fully described and claimed and illustrated in theaccompanying drawings in which:

igure l is a somewhat diagrammatic plan View of a circular knittingmachine embodying means for producing the fabric,

Figure 2 is a magnified view of the fabric produced,

Figure 3 is a vertical section through a portion of the knitting machineillustrating certain mechanical features thereof necessary to thecarrying out of the method.

Figure 4 is an elevation looking at the inside of the cam means foroperating the needles,

Figure 5 is a horizontal section through the cam means taken on the line5 5 of Figure 4,

Figure 6 is a cross section taken on the line 6-'6 of Figure 4, lookingin the direction of the arrows, and

Figure 7 is a cross section taken on the line 7 7 of Figure 4, likewiselooking in the direction of the arrows. l

Referring to the drawings in detail, I have illustrated, more or lessdiagrammatically, a portion of a circular knitting machine of a wellknown type. Only such parts are shown as are necessary for anunderstanding of the present invention. Machines of this type include astationary table 1 above which is supported, as by brackets 2, astationary ring 3 upon which are mounted segmental or arcuate plates 4which, together, constitute an upper circular ring. Suitably supportedwith respect to the-table 1 is a rotary head 5 travelling within theconfines of the ring defined by the late members 4 and adjacent theinner` per1phery of a ring 6 stationarily mounted with respect to thetable. The head 5 carries the needles to be described which cooperatewith cam dkvices carried by the ring 6. l

In carrying out the present invention I make use of two sets of needlesarranged in alternation, those of one set bein designated by the numeral7 and havin ong butts 8 and those of the other set being designated bthe numeral 9 and having short butts 10. cept in the matter of length ofthe butts the needles are all similar and are'provided loo 6l* While thelong butt needles needles short butt needles knit at the at their upperends with the usual beards 11 which catch the threads for carrying outthe knitting action. Operating between the successive needles are theusual radially movable sinkers or pressers 12 having projections 13thereon engaged within cam grooves 14 in a rin 15 mounted beneath thering defined by the p ates 4, these cam grooves 14 controlling theoutward and inward movement of the pressers or sinkers at the properperiodic intervals. Machines of this type are further provided withbeard closers 16 for the purpose of closing the beards so that they mayenter and pass through the loops of a previously made row of stitches.In actual practice these beardv closers are held in place by a circularcoil spring 17 which surrounds the head 5 and which engages withinnotches 18 in the outer edges of the beard closers for holding the beardclosers normally away from the path of movement of the beards. It isfurthermore customary toprovide cams 19 located at intervals andengageable by the beard closers for the purpose of lining them u andretracting them at points in advance oi) the knitting points, at whichlatter mentioned points are provided cams 20 for projecting the beardclosers outwardl into operative relation to the needles for e ectingclosing of the beards as the needles move downwardly so thathey willpass through previously made loops or stitches and permit the same to becast off preparatory to making the next successive row. When the machineis in operation all of the needles of course turn with the head 5, theneedle butts 8 and 10 being engaged by cam means so as to be movedupwardly and downwardly at the proper intervals. u

In carrying out the invention for producing the fabric shown in Figure2, I arrange the long and short butt needles 7 and 9 1n alternation andprovide a peculiar cam mechanism cooperatin with the butts 8 and 10thereof for electlng knitting with the two sets of needles, at certaintimes in alterna,

tion andat other times together. Referring to Figure 1 it will beobserved that the machine is designed to knitpwith eight threads 21, 22,23, 24, 25, 26, 27 and 28, which threads are led from any suitablesource and brought through suitable uides 29 and 30. It will be observedthat t e number of threads corresponds with the number of cam bearingsegments or sections at the plates 4, and at each ment has a knittingpoint located substantially at the cam 20. The knitting points for thethreads 21 to 28 Aare indicated at 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37 and 38,respectively. In the carrying out of the method the long butt knit atthe points 31 and 35, the points 33 and 37, while both the long an shortbutt needles knit at the points 32, 34, 36 and 38. 7 are knitting, at

the points 31 and 35, the short butt needles are idle and remain inlowered position so as not to catch the threads, and while`the shortbutt needles are knitting at the points 33 and 37 the long butt needlesare idle and in lowered position.

In order to eil'ect this necessary needle movement, I provide cammechanism which includes sections indicated generally b the numerals 40,41 and 42, the first named eing located at the knitting points 33 and 37the second named being located at the points 32, 34, 36 and 38 and thelast named being located at the points 31 and 35. The section 4() isshown as including a cam 43 having an inclined upper face or shoulder 44upon which ride both the long and the short butts of the needles. Toillustrate the path of movement through the 'cam sections 40, 41 and 42,I have provided dotted lines 45 and dash lines 46, these two linesrepresenting, respectively, the direction of travel of the short andlong butt needles. extending beyond the cam 43 is a cam 47 having ashoulder or ledge 48 curved downwardly for the purpose of directing theshort butt needles to a third cam 49 which is located at the knittingpoints 33 and 37. The cam 47 has a downwardly inclined shoulder 50located in the path of travel of the long butts only inasmuch as thisshoulder does not project outwardly to a suiiicient extent to be engagedby the short butts. The purpose of this shoulder or surface 50 is tomove the long butt needles downwardly out of the way and intoinoperative position while the short butt needles are knitting. Belowthe cams 47 and 49 is a cam 51 having a ledge 52 along which the longbutts travel after they leave the cam surface 50. The cam 49 has adownwardly inclined edge or surface 53 engaged by the short butt needlesafter they pass beyond the downwardly curved end 48 of the cam 47 sothat the short butt needles will be moved downwardly to perform theirknitting action while the long butt needles remain in lowered andinoperative position while passing along the ledge 52.

Each of the cam sections 41 located at the points 32, 34, 36 and 38where both sets of needles knit, includes a cam 54 having an'upwardlyinclined ledge 55 upon which both the long and short butts engage afterleaving the lowest point of the cam 49, this ledge acting to elevate allthe needles into position preparatory to making their stitches or loops.In end to end relation to the cam 54 is a cam 56 having a ledge 57 whichhas one end portion horizontal and acting as a continuation of thehigher end of the ledge 55 and which has its other end inclineddownwardly as shown at 58. The long and short butt needles ride alongthe ledges 55, 57 and 58. Above the cams 54 and 56 is a cam 59 spacedsomewhat from the ledge 57 so as to guide the Located above and loweredorinoperative position.

raised, While and one end of the cam 59 has a downwardly curved surface60 leading to the upper end of an inclined surface 61 on a cam 62, thissurface 61 actin to force the needle butts downwardly so tat the needleswill knit at the points 32, 34, 36 and 38.

The section 42'includes or comprises a cam 63 havin an upwardly inclinedledge 64 extending ?rom the lowest ortion of the cam 62 and projectsonly to suc an extent as to be in the path of travel of the long buttswhich will consequently engage thereu on and ride upwardly therealong,the shortl utts engaging upon a horizontal ledge 65 of the cam member`63and remaining consequentlyin Above the cam 63 is a cam 66 correspondingto the cams 47 and 59 and having a downwardly curved end portion 67leading to the upper end of a downwardly inclined surface 68 on a cammember 69 corresponding to the cam members 49 and 62. At the end of eachsection 42 is arranged a section 41. The curved lower edge of the cam 66coacts with the upper edge of the cam 63 for properly guiding the longbutts so that the long butt needles will be held elevated in position toengage and knit the threads. From the above it will be seen that atcertain times, all the needles are at other periods the long and shortbutt needles are alternately operated to effect knitting.

In the operation, it will be seen that' when the head 5 carrying all theneedles 7 and 9, the beard-closers 16 and the sinkersor pressers 12, isrotated, the beard closers are drawn back away from the needles bythecams 19 needle butts,

located in advance of the knitting points at which are located the cams49, 62 and 69 for moving the short butt needles, both the long and shortbutt needles, and the long butt needles alone, respectively, downwardly.The exact manner of thread treatment or handling at the starting of themachine is the same as usual, and assuming that the machine has beenoperating to a suflicient extent to Start the fabric properly, it willbe seen that when the butts 10 of the short butt neei' dles 9 come intoengagement with the inclined surface 53 of the cam members 49 the shortbutt needles are moved downwardly. In advance of this point the longbutt needles are moved downwardly along the surfaces 50 1nto inoperativeposition, as shown by the dash line at the right hand end of Figure 4.

As the short wardly by the cam 49 the beard closers 16 are forced towardthe needles by engagement with the cams 20. The threads 23 'and 27 areof course engaged within the beards of the short butt needles andWhenthese needles are moved downwardly the beards will eng the closers16 and be closed thereby so that the beards, carrying the threads willenter and pass through the loops thus forming butt needles 9 are moveddownage t e same manner except that the long buttneedles are operated byengagement with the inclined edges 68 of the cams 69 in the sections 42,the upper and downward movement resulting in the formation of the loops21" and 25". The threads 22`, 24, 26 and 28 are knitted by both the longand short butt needles, the needles being moved downwardl. by engagementwith thedownwardly incllned surface 61 of the cams 62 in the sections41, the exact action being the same as above indicated and the loops22a, 24", 26L and 28a being formed by the short bu-tt needles and theloops 22", 24", 26" and 28" being formed by the long butt needles.

In actually forming the fabric, the loops 23a and 27a are arranged inalternation with the loops 21" and 25" of a preceding row, and the loops22", 24", 26a and 28" are interlinked with the loops 23*il and 273whilethe loops 22", 24", 26" and 28" are interlinked with the loops 21" and25" as clearly indicated in Figure 2. In this way it is quite evidentthat the thread between the successive loops 23a and 27"L and betweenthe successive loops 21b and 25" will overlie the body or foundationdefined by the interlinking of the threads at those knitting pointswhere both the long and short butt'needles operate, thus producing asomewhat ribbed effect such as that illustrated.

From the foregoing description and a study of the drawings, it will beseen that I have thus provided a fabric together with a method and meansfor making the same, embodying certain known principles of design butinvolving an arrangement of operatively related elements which willproduce a fabric possessing certain highly desirable characteristics inthe matter of pattern which will be quite distinctive.

While I haveI shown and described the preferred embodiment of theinvention, it should be understood that the detailed steps in t-hemethod and the specific arrangement, location and correlation of theparts is merely for illustrative purposes only as I reserve the right tomake all such changes and modifications as will not depart from thespirit of the invention or the scope of the ,claim hereunto appended.

Having thus described -the claim: l

A knitted fabric comprising a plurality of threads in correspondingcourses, one knitted at alternate wales and floated at intervening walesin one course, one knitted at every wale of the second course, oneknitted at intervening wales and floated at alternate walesof the thirdcourse, and one knitted at every wale of the fourth course, the secondand invention, I

The sinkers or pressers fourth threads `for beneath the a Wale.

In testimo ny wh ming a foundation fabric floats of the first and e Ystagiered float relation erof loops in every of a yarn of a threaddecrease the loops in ereo I aix my signature ARRY RUBENSTEIN.

